Machine fob



NTE Sterns AEENT OFFic.

,iFREDERICK J. AYERS, Ol` ROXBURY,.MASSAGHUSETTS.

MACHINE FOR CUTTING NAILS,

i `Specflcation of Letters Patent No. 2,698, dated July 2, 1842.

u reference being had to the drawings which accompany said description and which, combined with it, form my specification.

The principles of my invention, by which it may be distinguished from others of a like character, are herein. set forth, together with such parts or combinations `of the same,` as I claim, and for which I solicit Letters Patent.

Figure l, represents a ground plan or top view of my machinery. Fig. 2 is a side elevation. Fig. 3,1i`s a vertical, longitudinal and central section. Fig. 4, isa vertical section on the line A B, Fig.` l.

C, Figs. l, 2, 3, 4, denotes the main body or frame,fwhich is to be composed of cast iron, and suitably shaped and arranged to support the operative parts` of the machinery. A

D is the spindle or main shaft from which the other parts of the machine `derive'their requisite movements, by means of eccentrics `on the same, the lsaid shaft revolving and being supported inbearings E, Efof the framework. `This shaft is turned by hand or by a belt, fromthe drivingpower, passing over a pulley suitably arranged on the same. A fly wheel F `is also fixed on the shaft l), in order to regulate` the movements of the machine.` Gr, H are the cutting leverswhose office is to cut the ironpreparatory to its beingl gripped and headed. They consist of knives a, b, `attached to the extremity lof bentarms c, "CZ, which are hung on arbors lor horizontal shafts I, K, situated ing-the back part of the machine, as seen in Figs. l, 3. `These cutting levers are `operated or alternately depressed by eccentricsL, .ll/l, on the main shaft.` They are raised upby two springs, N, Oto one endcf each of which `one of the levers is attached by aconnecting wire on link P or P. The other ends of each of the springsare fixed to t-hetop of a perv `R, S, are the" gripping levers whose office is to grip the `rail so that it may be headed. One of these levers is connected, at its foot, to a horizont-al shelf T, extends upwardLas seen in Fig. V3, by the sideof themain shaft D, and is pressed forward by aneccent-ric U of the main shaft and drawn back by the action of a spring V, Figs. l, 2, 3, which is connected with the `top of the gripping -`lever by a rod WV. Thus the gripping lever has a slight vibratory motion in the longitudinal the gripping lever K with the shaft T is seen in Fig. 5. A small gripping tool, c, Figs. 3, 5, 6, is attached to the lever R in the position seen in the drawings. The other gripping `lever Sis similarly arranged and `supported on another horizont-al rolling It is `drawn back by a spring W and rod X, and pushed forward by an eccentric Y on the main shaftsimilar to the eccentric fZ, e, Figsssl, 4, `are the heading tools. Theyareeach screwed or otherwiseproperly fixedA down upon a cross bar g or Each of the bars g, Zanis supported `at its ends on pieces z', z', Z, z', Fig. l, which turn on centers Ze Z3, Figs. 3, 4. Thecross bars g, aare lifted up and down, (or vibrate vertically on the centers 7c, Ze), by eccentric rods Z, m, to `which the same are hung or jointed. The rods Z, m, are raised and depressed by eccentrics on the main shaft, which arev so arranged as to alternately raise and depress the heading tools and bring their ends in contact with the nail, `and by pressing on the same tol head it.`

nl, 0, Figs. l, 2, 8, 4, are nipper levers, whose oliice is to press the` nippers on the nail when conveyed down by the cutters and gripping levers. s i e Fig. 6, `is a front view of one of the `cuttinglevers, `exhibiting the knife a and gage j? in rear of the same, the gage extending down some `distance belowthe edge of the knife. Fig. 7, is a side View of the gage and knife more clearly showing the gage in rear of the knife. The plate from which the nail `is cut is pressed against the s gage just before the cutter descends, and as the cutter goes down it removes a portion (or the nail), therefrom which drops or is pressed down by the cutter to the nippers, which pendicular standard ofthe framework.

come up andhold the same` untilrelieved direct-ion of the machine. A front view of gages and to hold it until relieved by they V Figs. 1, 3, 4, pro-jecting from the framework,

V main shaft.

and are vibratedby eccentrics 11, s, on the A front view of one of the nippers is shown in Fig. 8, each of said nippers being supported in position in rear of the dies, by a perpendicular spindle or shaft, t, Figs. 2, 4, which is permitted to vibrate in bearings at each extremity. A pitman u connects the foot `of the nipper lever with the nipper, so that when the eccentric on the main shaft causes the top of the nipperYV lever to, recede, the'bottom Yadvances, and through the intervention of the v pitman presses the nipper forward on the nail. The nipper vis' withdrawn from the same by the action vof a spring o, Figs. 1, 2, operating 'on the external end of the nipper through a rod w.

, Figs. 1, 3, 9 are the dies, over the v inner edge of which, the nail plate is passed against the gage. When the cutting lever descends and removes the nail from the plate, it carries the same down upon a small projection or shelf y, Fig. 9, more particularly shown in the to-p view Fig. 10, on which the-nippers receive and hold it, until the grippers next come up and grip it or forceit against the die, while the heading Ytoolperformsits operation. As soon as the grippers recede, the nail will fall from the angular shelf by'reason of the heaviest partV of the same resting over the shelf, as exhibited by dotted lines in ig. 10.

A lever a Figs. 1, 4, turning on a fulcrum at In Fig. t, is connected at its top to the yend of the main shaft by a crank pin o lthe top of a standard z" Figs. 2, 3. The vibratory frame k Figs. 1, 2, 3, is connected near one extremity to the end f o-f the bent lever, by meansV of the cylindrical stud Z projecting from the frame 7c and entering a circular aperture bored through the end ofthe bent lever. The frame 7c is supported at its other extremity in the standard m, by a common universal joint N', which permits the frame to be Vlifted from the bent lever f g 7L and t-urned aside lat,- erally.

i The frame 7c is for carrying the strip of metalfo, Figs. 1, 3, from which the nails are out; the said strip having one and inverted' in the extremity of a holder p. The holder, resting on the top of the cross piece g', situated Atransversely Vunderneat-h the bars of the frame 7c, and having the stud Z depending therefrom, consists of the piece of metal p', having a long rod 7" inserted in its end, and extending back and passing through the center of the universal joint as seen in Fig. 3, on which said rod is supported and slides longitudinally. rlhe strip of metal o, bv the connection of the frame lc with the bent lever j" g 7a, has a lat-eralY movement back and forth, and consequently presents its end alternately to each of the cutters of the levers G, H, and the strip may beforced up against the gages of the same by the hand of the attendant appliedto the extremity of the rod r, or by a string attached to the same, and passing over a small pulley conveniently situated, and having'a weight on its other end, which shall act so as to draw forward the rod.

A guide piece s is applied to the frame c, to support the extremity of the strip of metal o adjacent to the cutters.

The similar parts of the above apparatus act in a reverse manner, that is to say, when o-ne cut-ting lever is in the act of removing a piece of iron from the endof the strip, the other has already performed that duty and is preparing for it again, and so with the other.

This machine bears little resemblance toY sok the common nail machine. The superior advantage of the one overthe other, will be obvious, by contrasting them in the following particulars. The common machine can cut but one nail at a single revolution of the balance wheel, while the new one will cut two. The latter can feed itself without manual labor by a vibratory motion of the plate, while the former is subject to the inconvenient method of turning the plate over, and this by hand.

The new machine has two cutting, two

gripping, two heading levers, each hung separately on its own supports, whereas in the common machines, there is but one of each description of lever, and in other respects one may be said to befor the most part double when the other is single. An-

other important distinction is, that the v gages, attached to the cutting lever in they new machine and which convey the nail into the dies to be gripped and headed, are made to do the same by the pointed end,

and the nippers hold the nail by its center I-Iaving thus described `my improvements I shall claiml. The gage p, appliedto the rear of the cutting knife a, in combination With the die for the purpose of retaining the nail against the adjacent face of the die when separated from the strip 0, and While being conveyed by the cutting knife, down upon the shelf 1, and also for holding said nail against said face ofthe die, until it is received by one of the nippers; the same being constructed and operating substantially as above explained. y y

2. Also, the angular shelf'y upon which the nail is deposited by the cutting tool, and

sustained by the nipper and gripper, during the heading operation, in combination With the gage p and the die w, the said angular Shelf being fol-mea as above Set forth, by

which peculiar shape the nail (by reason of its heaviest part resting beyond the shelf) is caused by the action of gravity to fall from said shelf on recession of the gripper, the Whole being constructed and operatingsubstantially in the manner and on the principles herein before explained.

In testimony that the foregoing is a true description of my said invention and improvements I have hereto set my signature thiseighteenth day of October in the year eighteen hundred and forty one.

i FREDERICK J AYERS.

Witnesses: y

WM. II. SoovIL, It. P.V MoGrrvnNs.` 

